The social media platform X — formerly Twitter — is suing a group of advertisers over their alleged mass boycott of the site after Elon Musk's takeover nearly two years ago.
The lawsuit was filed Tuesday against the World Federation of Advertisers and its member companies Unilever, Mars, CVS Health, and Orsted.
X claims the group's Global Alliance for Responsible Media coordinated a pause in advertising after Musk bought the platform in 2022 for $44 billion. The suit also accuses the companies of violating antitrust laws and depriving X of billions of dollars in advertisement revenue.
"We tried peace for 2 years, now it is war," Musk said in a statement after the lawsuit was announced.
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X CEO Linda Yaccarino said in an open letter to advertisers that the lawsuit stemmed from a Republican-led House Judiciary Committee investigation. A report released by lawmakers last month claims to have found evidence that advertisers "directly organized boycotts" in order to target certain social media platforms.
"I was shocked by the evidence uncovered by the House Judiciary Committee that a group of companies organized a systematic, illegal boycott against X," Yaccarino said in a video statement. "It is just wrong. And that is why we are taking action."
A Message to X Users pic.twitter.com/6bZOYPhWVa
— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayaX) August 6, 2024
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The online video platform Rumble said it has also joined the X lawsuit, and claimed a "cartel of advertisers" illegally conspired to prevent ad revenue from going to certain social media platforms.
